parents as straight allies

Know Your School’s LGBT Rights

You’ve done your homework as a parent to prepare your child for possible bullying, harassment. According to GLSEN figures, you can expect bullying. Approximately 85% of high school students report being harassed in school because of their real or perceived sexual orientation, 64% of students document that they are harassed because of their real or perceived gender…

Make The School Your Ally

Last week, I addressed preparing your LGBT child for possible bullying during the school year. It’s a straight parent’s homework! Most importantly, you want to make the school your ally. How do you do this? Talk to the school personnel to discover what they regard as bullying. However, keep in mind that often teachers and…

When School Feels Dangerous To Your LGBT Child

GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, is the leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for all students. New data from the GLSEN National School Climate Survey of LGBT students shows that although homophobic remarks and verbal harassment in schools has leveled off for the first time in a decade, nevertheless…

Parents Can Struggle for Years When Their LGBT Kids Come Out

According to a new important study, headed by David Huebner, PhD, MPH, associate professor of prevention and community health at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, many parents still say after two years that it is moderately or very hard for them to adjust to the news of their childrens’ coming…

Today Is Non-Binary Day

PRIDE month in many cities has come to a close, but not its impact. Crowds of the non-binary population swelled the streets. So, how do you define non-binary? It’s an umbrella term for a person who identifies with or expresses a gender identity that is neither entirely male nor entirely female. It’s the opposite of…

Majority of LGBTQ Black & African American Youth Can’t Relax At Home

blackyouthproject.com HRC Foundation and University of Connecticut’s report “Black & African American LGBTQ Youth Report,” released last February, details the experiences of Black and African-American LGBTQ youth. Nearly 1,700 young people, ranging in age from 13 to 17, took part in this HRC’s online 2017 LGBTQ Teen Survey. What they shared was dismal: · They…

A Middle Schooler once called “It” Helped Changed SEX Education in Arizona

Credit: Mike Christy / Arizona Daily Star Santi Ceballos, 13, from Tucson, Arizona came out as non-binary in September 2017. Many of his former classmates called him “it” because he doesn’t identify as being male or female and is possibly transgender. Santi uses the pronouns they and them in regards to they’s sexual identities.…

PRIDE Flags – More Than Decoration

Created by Daniel Quasar June is the month associated with PRIDE. It’s a month of readings, events, Stonewall photography, exhibits, and, of course, marches and parades. Banners and flags unfurled everywhere, bringing the LGBTQ community together yet highlighting the differences among different groups. But what do the colors actually signify in the different…

GAY PRIDE: WHY WE CELEBRATE, Guest Post by Bryce Thompson

June is traditionally GAY PRIDE Month. Today, Bryce Thompson, M.A., LMFT, author of the forthcoming book, Are You Man Enough? A Call to Action Guide for Straight Fathers of a Gay Son, is writing a guest blog post on Gay Pride: Why We Celebrate! PRIDE counters the pain, marginalization, and attempted “eraser” of nature’s diversity!…

Are Your Kids Mentally Healthy?

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. According to American Psychological Association News, March 8, 2019, “more U.S. adolescents and young adults in the late 2010’s vs. mid 2000’s experienced serious psychological distress, major depression or suicidal thoughts and more attempted suicide.” Anxiety and depression are on the rise and suicide is now the second…

What is Acceptance?

What Constitutes Acceptance? If a parent doesn’t want to march in a Gay Pride Parade, is he not accepting of his LGBT child? If a parent doesn’t write an amicus brief to the Supreme Court for the three cases being considered for the expansion of the Civil Rights Act of 1967…

Beyond “The Talk”

Yesterday was National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The purpose of this annual day (April 10) is to support youth HIV prevention by promoting school-based health education. However, I’m not “a day late and a dollar short,” because I believe I’m on the money about the importance of parents educating their child about safe…

Coming Out as Transgender

Today is the annual event of International Transgender Day of Visibility. Its purpose is to celebrate transgender people and raise awareness of worldwide discrimination faced by transgender people. Prior to 2009, the only well-known transgender-centered holiday was the Transgender Day of Remembrance which mourned the murders of transgender people. It was a sad…

“You’re Bi What?”

Most parents and society-at-large don’t understand bisexuality. Sexuality is fluid, according to Freud. For a person having a bisexual orientation, the orientation is not chosen even though the sex of the partner may be. According to social psychologist Justin Lehmiller, Ph.D., author of The Psychology of Human Sexuality, being bisexual doesn’t necessarily mean…

A Discriminating Vote by Methodists

This week, the delegates of the United Methodist Church gathered to take a vote on whether to reinforce a ban on gay marriage. This second largest Protestant Church, with 12 million members world-wide voted 53-47 to discriminate against the LGBT community. With nearly 7 million Methodists in the United States, the younger parishioners…